Brotherly Love, or More?
by Chibi Atariel Tsukai
Summary: Hao Asakura was happy when things in his family were simple. Even when his younger brother was born exactly five years after, he was fine. However, ten years later as he and Yoh BOTH enter high school, his feelings for the younger Asakura began to change
1. Mixed Feelings On A Birthday

Title: Brotherly Love, or More?

Author: Chibi Atariel Tsukai

Date: March 1, 2011

Summary: (Alternate Universe) Hao Asakura was happy when things in his family were simple. Even when his younger brother was born exactly five years after, he was fine. However, ten years later as he and Yoh BOTH enter high school, his feelings for the younger Asakura begin to change and he is not quite sure why.

Rating: T, for now.

Authoress's Note: This Shaman King fanfiction is a rewrite of one I had written long before I decided to wipe out my old fanfics. Thanks to Olihime for inspiring me to rewrite it! =D

Disclaimer: Nope, I don't own Shaman King either. If I had, 4Kids would have never been allowed to change Hao's name to Zeke.

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Chapter One: Mixed Feelings On A Birthday

Hao Asakura was up early that morning of the twelfth day of May. And, of course, when he was up, that meant that the rest of the house would be up shortly after him. The young boy with long brown hair tiptoed down the hall from his bedroom to his parents' bedroom and gently pushed the door open. When it did not creak and his parents did not stir, he continued on his way quietly into the room. He stood on his father's side of the bed and threw himself up on the man, exclaiming, "Dad, Mom! Wake up!"

Mikihisa shot up, surprised by the sudden weight. Keiko stirred a bit and looked over to her son with a sleepy smile. "Good morning, Hao," she said kindly.

Hao only grinned widely, bouncing up and down on Mikihisa's lap, causing the man to flinch every so often. "Guess what, guess what, guess what!" he said with a grin. Before either could say anything, he continued, "I'm five now! It's my birthday!"

"Oh, is that today?" Mikihisa asked, sounding completely serious.

"Dad! You know it is!" Hao giggled, throwing his arms around his father and swaying gently. He really loved his family just the way it was. He had a funny father, a kind mother, a strict grandpa and a stern grandma. Even if living in a shaman family was a little weird compared to what the other children in his kindergarten talked about all the time, he was completely satisfied with the way things were.

Keiko then moved to sit up, Mikihisa looking concerned for her. She just smiled. "I'm fine, Miki. I'm just going to get Kino so we can start cooking all of Hao's favorite breakfast food." When Mikihisa silently tried to get her to stay in bed, she shook her head softly. "I'll be fine," she reassured before getting up.

Black eyes blinked a few times and Hao looked back and forth between his parents, confused as to what they were talking about. Something was wrong with Keiko – at least, Mikihisa made it seem that way. The boy dropped down from his parents' bed and trailed out of the room after Keiko, who looked down at him and smiled. "I want you to be washed up and dressed before breakfast okay? We're going to have a fun day today!"

The brunette nodded softly and turned around, going back to Mikihisa. They then went to the washroom, where Yohmei joined them shortly after. Keiko and Kino always got their baths at night, so they could both make breakfast while the boys were washing up.

About twenty minutes later, the birthday boy, his father, and his grandfather made their way out of the washroom and to the kitchen from which the wonderful smell of breakfast drifted. Hao was put at the head of the table, where a few small presents were set. He picked a wrapped box up and held it near his ear, shaking softly. A thoughtful frown came to his lips as he tried to guess what it was.

This caused the watching Keiko to giggle. "You can go ahead and open that one, sweetie," she told him.

The boy nodded and unwrapped the box before pulling the lid off and the tissue paper out. "Wowww! These are so cool!" he exclaimed, holding up a pair of red fingerless gloves with a white star right on the top of each hand. Hao's favorite color was red and he loved the shape of stars, so it was a perfect gift, even if not a toy.

He went to put them on, but Keiko stopped him. "Not in the house, silly boy! And not at school either. You're only allowed to wear them when you go outside. Promise me you'll only wear them outside, okay?"

Black eyes blinked a few times and Hao nodded softly. "I promise I'll only wear them outside," he repeated.

Keiko smiled and kissed his forehead. "That's a good boy. Happy Birthday, sweetie," she murmured softly. A small whimper then escaped her lips and she fell slightly, leaning against her son.

Hao's eyes then widened. "Mom? Mom, what's wrong? Dad! Grandpa, Grandma! Mom's hurt!" he called down the hall, trying to keep Keiko from falling all of the way down to the floor.

Mikihisa was the first in the dining room and by Hao's side. He picked Keiko up and quickly carried her bridal-style through the house and to their bedroom. Kino followed close behind, even before Hao could get down from the dining room chair. The brunette got down and ran down the hall, but she was already closing the door. She looked to Yohmei, completely rejecting her grandson's attempts to get inside the bedroom. "Finish making breakfast so Hao can eat. It should not take to long."

Hao struggled as Yohmei took him by the arm and led his to the kitchen. We'll eat our breakfast and keep everyone else's warm in the oven," he told his grandson.

The boy, of course, was too afraid of what had happened to his mother. He thought that the old man had finally lost it since he was able to stay calm. "Grandpa, what's wrong with Mom? Is she sick? Is it really bad? Does she need medicine?" he asked, not stopping to take a breath.

The man shook his head softly. "She is not sick, but she should have been resting. She. . has a surprise for you. I suppose I still cannot tell you, even if you are scared. She wanted to be the one to tell you about it. So you'll just have to wait."

Black eyes filled with tears, which Hao wiped away, not wanting his grandfather to see him cry. "But she's hurt! Whatever the surprise is, I don't want it!" he shouted. He then ran down the hall and pounded his small fists on the door. "I don't want it! I just want you to be okay, Mom!" he told her through the door before sliding down to rest on his hands and knees. "Please. . . "

Kino's expectations had been wrong, as she would later admit. It was at least two hours before she opened the bedroom door to find a sleeping Hao lying right in front of it, having not moved even to join Yohmei for breakfast. He had refused to eat, as if it would make Keiko better. Kino sighed and shook her head softly. She leaned down and shook the boy awake. "Hao, Keiko and Mikihisa want you to come in now," she told him.

The brunette jumped up and rudely pushed his way inside. He ran to the bedside but did not even jump up on his dad's side, which was currently unoccupied. "Mom, are you o-?" He cut himself off as he realized that the only sound in the room besides his own voice was a crying that was not coming from either of his parents.

Keiko looked over to Hao with one of her kindest smiles. "You can get up here, sweetie. I want you to come up," she said softly.

He obliged, of course, his eyes widening as he looked into her frail arms to see what looked like a tiny human. He looked up to his parents, an unreadable expression on his face. "What is _it_?" he asked with a frown.

Keiko, as always, could not help but to giggle at her son's naivety. "He's a he, not an it, Hao. We wanted this to be a surprise, but we had no idea that today would be the day for him to come out. This is your baby brother, Yoh," she explained, even though she knew that he would not understand completely. "Happy Birthday - to you, Hao, and your baby brother, Yoh too," she said softly with a relieved smile.

Hao did not seem too happy about those words. He was old enough to know the consequence of his words, though, so he remained quiet. He laid down on the bed and hugged a pillow. The rest of the day went like this. He opened his other presents, but nothing got him as excited as the gloves had. His mood was spoiled from being so afraid that something was wrong with his mother and now a little brother that now shared his birthday that he had no idea about before he even came out. Naturally, a young child would be jealous.

Keiko, sure he would come around soon enough, just sat in bed with him. When Mikihisa took Yoh to hold him, Keiko gently placed Hao's head in her lap. She stroked his long hair to comfort him. He eventually fell asleep, as did Yoh. Mikihisa placed Yoh in the crib, which Hao had paid no attention to for however long it had been in his parents' room, and went to sleep in Hao's bed since his son was sprawled out across his and Keiko's bed.

More hours passed and Hao did not awake until it was late in the night. He rubbed the sleep out of his black eyes. He yawned and looked over to the clock on Mikihisa's side of the bed. It read eleven fifty-five. His birthday was almost over and it had not gone as he had expected at all. A frown came to the young boy's lips as he sat up and stared into the darkness. His eyes adjusted and rested on the crib on the other side of the room. A baby slept in it peacefully, oblivious to the pain he had caused by leaving his mother's womb on that particular day. Hao sighed softly a few minutes later and looked at the clock again before dropping down from the bed. He crossed the room as quietly as he could and reached his arm through the bars, his hand gently resting on the baby's tiny body. "Happy Birthday, Yoh. . . " he whispered.

The clock read eleven fifty-nine, just in time for it to still be May twelfth.

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Authoress's Note: I have to say that this is definitely the winner for the longest chapter I've ever written – by a long shot! I know the original was different, but I got some new ideas and ran with them. I thought it would be nice to portray Hao sweet like this and I'm really happy with how it turned out. But anyways, there's chapter one to Brotherly Love, or More? I hope you enjoyed it. Please review~


	2. Sweet Words Between Brothers

Title: Brotherly Love, or More?

Author: Chibi Atariel Tsukai

Date: March 2, 2011-April 17, 2011

Summary: (Alternate Universe) Hao Asakura was happy when things in his family were simple. Even when his younger brother was born exactly five years after, he was fine. However, ten years later as he and Yoh BOTH enter high school, his feelings for the younger Asakura begin to change and he is not quite sure why.

Rating: T, for now.

Authoress's Note: Chapter Two of BLoM! I have no idea if I'll ever be able to top the length of the first chapter. . But anyways, thanks for the reviews so far! Everyone seems to like the sweet side of Hao! ^^

Disclaimer: It's only been a couple of hours (/days, depending on when I finish writing this) and I still don't own Shaman King. D=

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Chapter Two: Sweet Words Between Brothers

He had absolutely no idea how it had happened, but somehow ten-year-old Hao was left home alone with five-year-old Yoh for the day. Keiko had asked – no, _begged_ - him to play nicely since his attitude towards his younger brother seemed to change with ever passing minute. Mikihisa, of course, had given him a fairly long lecture before they had left with Yohmei and Kino.

So far, everything was going fine. The younger Asakura was still asleep. The older was sitting in the bedroom that was decorated to seem like a spring day at a park. The short-haired brunette really loved to be outside. He would be a good shaman one day, because he would be capable of easily becoming one with nature. Even just out in their backyard, the boy was able to relax and have no worries. He would never let anyone else see him, but he often found himself watching the boy who was born exactly five years after him as he dozed off while sprawled out in the grass. He always looked so peaceful whenever asleep, just as he was now.

A small frown came to the older brother's lips as he found himself watching the younger sleep once again. He shook his head and averted his gaze. Sure, he was the older brother, but that did not mean that he had to watch the other brunette every moment his parents were not around to do so. He had other things to do, like homework!

Giving a gentle nod, the long-haired child stood up and headed out of Yoh's room. He closed the door behind himself so he would hear it open if his brother was up. He then headed down the narrow hallway, down two doors to get to his own bedroom.

Once inside, Hao grabbed his backpack and carried it over to his desk. He pulled some of the things he needed out and set them down on the desk before sitting down at it. He scribbled his name down at the top of the first paper he found and set off to work.

Before the ten-year-old knew it, an hour had almost gone by. What was more surprising, however, was that he had completely missed hearing not only Yoh's bedroom door open, but his own open as well. A small, warm hand suddenly touched his own and the older brunette jumped slightly. Black eyes blinked several times and followed from the hand, up the arm, and to meet an identical pair of eyes. "_Yoh_. . . why did you do that? You know you're supposed to knock first!" he hissed.

The child whimpered softly, not liking to be scolded. "But Hao~ Mommy and Daddy and Grandpa and Grandma aren't home! Where are they?" he asked. The two of them had never been left home alone together, as far as he could remember and he was wondering what exactly was going on.

The older brother sighed softly. "I'm sorry, Yoh. You just scared me a bit," he admitted. "All of the adults have things to do and I'm old enough to watch you on my own now. Mom was reluctant to leave, but Dad managed to talk her into it," he explained, shrugging his shoulders gently. He then turned back to his homework, wanting to get through as much as he could before anything else happened.

The younger Asakura frowned a little, his black eyes tearing up a little. "Hao. . will you play with me?" he asked quietly. "I wanna go outside, but I'm not allowed to on my own. . . "

Hao could not help but to roll his eyes. He had been allowed to do mostly anything when he was five, but Yoh was not. He was Keiko and Mikihisa's baby and they were really protective of him. He did not even go to kindergarten, since their parents had decided that Keiko would home school him for now. Sometimes, he felt that it was unfair, but he had actually gotten used to it. Being the older brother, he was expected to get used to it and treat Yoh just as everyone else did.

This explained why the long-haired boy was now looking at his younger brother with a very small frown on his lips. He then sighed and pushed his chair away from the desk. Standing up, he was at least one and a half feet taller than the boy that stood there, looking up at him with wide, pleading eyes. "Let's go out back," he said, gaining a cheer from the younger brunette.

Yoh then took off through the house, giggling happily as he headed for the backyard. He ran with both arms thrown out from his sides, like the wings of an airplane. Once in the grass, he tripped, but could not seem to care less. He just rolled so that he was on his back, looking up to the sky.

Hao walked over to join him with a few shakes of his head. "Dad would kill me if you got hurt doing that. He wouldn't even believe me if I told him that you did it on your own," the brunette said with a sigh. He looked down at the younger for a few moments before dropping down and lying in the grass with him.

The five year old let out a long yawn, as if he somehow had not gotten enough sleep, and shimmied his way across the ground, even closer to his older brother. He lifted his head a tiny bit and moved it so that it was resting on top of the other brunette's chest. He had his chin on the other's body, his black eyes looking up into the other pair.

He just stayed quiet, looking his brother in the eyes for a few moments. Yoh then smiled and spoke up. "I think you're a good brother, Hao-nii. I would tell Mommy and Daddy not to be mad and I won't get hurt again. But I'm not hurt now, so everything's okay, right?"

Black eyes blinked softly and the older brunette gave a slow nod. He lifted both hands and gently placed them on top of the younger's head, patting it gently.

"Yep, everything's okay. But you don't have to worry about that. I won't let anything hurt you in the first place."

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Authoress's Note: I am SOOO sorry that this chapter took so long. I literally had less than one page left to come up with, but have not looked at it for some time. I feel bad and hope that you're all not too mad. Anyways, as I was discussing with Olihime, I was going to mention how Hao met Ren and Horo Horo in this chapter, but I figure that I'll dedicate an entire chapter to it. So, coming up next on Shaman King: Brotherly Love, or More? - Making Friends During A Strange Encounter! (Sorry, I had to do it. XDDD)


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